She was however shocked when, despite a strong primary vote and after 15 years of service as a councillor, mayor and deputy mayor, Cr Bernard Gaffney didn’t make it across the line as he was knocked for a six when the preferences came through.
Cr Horne believes this is because our preferential voting system is based around having a group of candidates, yet when we think about who we would like to vote for, we think in terms of individual people.
Wahgunyah stalwart Alan Pleitner echoed Cr Horne’s sentiment saying that Bernie would be sorely missed and described him as “a really genuine, honest and unbiased person who just happened to be on our side occasionally”.
“He could understand, due to isolation, that we had some issues. He’d be interested in us, as well as the whole of the shire.”
Mr Pleitner exampled the flooding over the Wahgunyah side of the shire in 2022 when water was going through houses. “I was on the phone to him the next morning and straightaway he said ‘I’ll get the mayor and we’ll come and have a look’,” Mr Pleitner said. “He spoke to the residents.”
Cr Horne went on to urge the community’s ongoing participation in shire activities.“I’d really like to thank the people for their faith in me and strongly encourage them to keep being engaged with what’s going on,” she said.
“People power plays such a significant role in getting action from the various levels of government. A perfect example is the 900 people who signed the petition to get some action for increased safety measures in Main Street, Rutherglen.”
The decades-long supporter, firstly as a town resident, of increased safety and sustainability throughout the area is very optimistic about the next four years.
“There is lots of work to be done but progress is being made, especially with news of progress in Main Street and the development of the town’s big, $57 million, 50 bed aged care facility under construction and due for completion around mid 2025,” she said.
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